Employee Engagement
It is clear that wellness programs are only continuing to grow in popularity! According to this 2018 report by Robert Half, 66%, of human resources managers reported that they implemented or expanded on their wellness programs in the past five years. In addition, 82% of employers are currently investing in wellbeing initiatives, or plan to over the next three years. According to the 23rd Annual Best Practices in Health Care Employer Survey, getting employees engaged with wellness programs remains the biggest challenge. Despite this, employers are remaining committed to improving employee wellbeing. One way employers are working to get employees more engaged with wellness is utilizing technology and health apps.
How Health Apps Increase Engagement
Phone and desktop apps provide users with want they want most: instant information. Being able to access information quickly and easily makes it more intriguing, and health related information is no different. When one’s health data is right there on their phone, it not only generates curiosity, but it also helps motivate them to participate in healthier activities.
The personalization aspect of health apps is another reason it increases engagement. For example, instead of sending out a memo with a generic graph explaining how much money could be saved with certain health care plans, you could personalize the graph for each employee through your company’s health care app. This will not only give employees easier access to the information, but since it is personalized to them, they will immediately be more interested.
Why Health Apps Are Good for Employers Too
According to The Benefits Guide, health apps drive quality digital engagement that is good for both the employer and the users. They break in down into three parts: data, insights, and experiences.
- Data: Data is the foundation of health apps. It tells you about what users want, what they need, what their activities are and where they have been. Data like this has the potential to revolutionize health care.
- Insights: The best apps with take the data they track and discover patterns, develop user profiles, and create meaningful and useful takeaways. The more detailed the data is, the better the insights will be.
- Experiences: The Benefits Guide lists telemedicine, prescription refills, disease management, treatment recommendations and fitness plans as engaging health care experiences that can be developed after analyzing the app data and insights.
Choosing the Best Health Care Apps
Following the demand, health apps have saturated the market. Choosing the best ones can be very overwhelming, so here are a few tips!
- Cloud based options, as opposed to just having a mobile solution or on premise, are always the best choice since it will offer better storage and ensure everyone has access to the information at all times.
- You want to choose an app that can be be controlled and administered by companies over consumer-based apps.
- The best apps will include functions such as health assessments, data and analytics, biometric tests, and incentive management.
Well-chosen health apps will help increase employee engagement, help employees meet their wellness goals, and help save on health care costs for both employees and employers. For more information on our health portal and available health app, please contact us!
